Cake icing advice please!

[CarolinaMooncup]

I'm going to make ds a cake in the shape of a red bus for his birthday this week, and I have two questions:

1. Should I use royal icing or butter icing (actually marg as he is allergic to dairy)?

and

1. How do I get a bright red colour? Should I use paste colours as Nigella insists or will cochineal do?

TIA

[PandaG]

Paste colours much better ime, you get a much stronger colour without the icing going sloppy. For a child's cake I would usually use sugarpaste / rollout icing as you can get an easy smooth surface, but between the 2 I would use butter icing, as I assume you will be making a sponge not a fruit - butter or marg icing nicer with sponge I think. NB I would do a madeira rather than straight sponge as easier to shape, firmer to decorate and keep for longer. HTH

[foxtrottingtotransylvania]

If you can get to a cake decorating shop you can buy ready coloured, ready to roll icing, which is very easy to use. Cochineal may come out a bit pink, someone on a recent thread suggested sainsburys natural, as opposed to artificial, colourings.

[CarolinaMooncup]

Thanks for the ideas

My plan was a chocolate cake. It's just a small family tea type of thing - he's only going to be 2 - and I reckon most of us would appreciate chocolate more.

I'm not sure if that would be strong enough for the rollout icing, so I guess butter icing would work better.

Do supermarkets sell paste colours or do I need a specialist shop?

[foxtrottingtotransylvania]

sugarpaste/ready to roll is lightweight, it's fine to use straight on the cake without marzipan if you're going to eat it straightaway.
Maybe do the bus in white (which you can buy in the supermarket) and pipe the outline & windows etc in red writing/designer icing (also from the supermarket), couple of liquorice whirls for wheels, and you're away. Never noticed the paste colours in the supermarket.

[CarolinaMooncup]

liquorice wheels? If they are dairy-free, you are a genius

[PandaG]

can make a choc madeira, just add half amount of sr flour again as pl flour ie 8 oz sr and 4 oz pl flour, and 2 tbsp or so cocoa. paste colours usually from specialist shop. where are you? I am in S yorks and have loads of cake dec stuff, happy to help if you are local

[LIZS]

Think you can buy ready to roll fondant icing in red in supermarkets - a mixed pack of 3 colours by Supercook iirc.

[PandaG]

yeah Lizs you can, not a huge quantity though iirc.

[CarolinaMooncup]

Thanks very much for the ideas.

Can I just ask why royal icing isn't a good idea? (I've only used it on fairy cakes before)